Just keep your eyes peeled for a Millermatic 210 and call it a day. Old enough to help make the price come down and it'll do 3/8" when you need to. I've had mine since new, run .035 wire and never had an issue.

Let someone else pay the depreciation; that's what I did with my buzz box.

Your best bet is a local store. They will give you good advice on a machine that fits your needs and budget. They'll also set you up with tanks, tools, and accessories.

Take it home and start welding.

This isnt entirely true  I have a local airgas that will just plain run a newb right out of the store

I know Im late to this thread but let me make some suggestions

1st of Ive been welding for 25 years  never as a profession but I have made some money  enough to have paid for my equipment

I started out with a Lincoln weldpak 100 bought at price club - thats Costco for you young guys  did a ton of work with that machine, easily weld 3/8 material with multiple passes  That welder was around for 10 years  remember that this was before the big box store welders  they are just not the same as a welder from a welding supplier

Shortly after the weldpak 100 I purchased a miller 250G engine driven machine  the weldpak 100 got me started, I soon realized I really enjoyed welding and it was time for a bigger machine but I didnt have the electricity required to run a bigger machine  shop only had a 30 amp service

The 250g was a stick welder, mig welder with a spool gun, and a tig machine which could run AC for aluminum welding with the addition of a high frequency box  I had it all, acquired over some time  I still have this machine use it at that same location with limited power

When the Lincoln died I replaced with a miller 211  this is a great welder  runs off both 110 and 220 and its plenty capable  weld exhaust pipes and sheet metal, then do 3/8 material with 1 pass

I also have a miller 280DX inverter machine  tig and stick weld with it  this machine is the cats ass

The point of all this  buy the most welder that you can afford no matter if you can use it or not  if you enjoy welding youll learn how to use you machine  dont outgrow your welders capabilities, grow into your welder  if you find welding isnt for you, you can always sell quality equipment for very little loss

I would strongly suggest the Miller 211 as your 1st welder

I would also suggest a quality auto dimming helmet with a large window  you must see what you are doing  spend $200 plus on your helmet

This isn’t entirely true — I have a local airgas that will just plain run a newb right out of the store

I know I’m late to this thread but let me make some suggestions

1st of I’ve been welding for 25 years — never as a profession but I have made some money — enough to have paid for my equipment

I started out with a Lincoln weldpak 100 bought at price club - that’s Costco for you young guys — did a ton of work with that machine, easily weld 3/8” material with multiple passes — That welder was around for 10 years — remember that this was before the big box store welders — they are just not the same as a welder from a welding supplier

Shortly after the weldpak 100 I purchased a miller 250G engine driven machine — the weldpak 100 got me started, I soon realized I really enjoyed welding and it was time for a bigger machine but I didn’t have the electricity required to run a bigger machine — shop only had a 30 amp service

The 250g was a stick welder, mig welder with a spool gun, and a tig machine which could run AC for aluminum welding with the addition of a high frequency box — I had it all, acquired over some time — I still have this machine use it at that same location with limited power

When the Lincoln died I replaced with a miller 211 — this is a great welder — runs off both 110 and 220 and it’s plenty capable — weld exhaust pipes and sheet metal, then do 3/8 material with 1 pass

I also have a miller 280DX inverter machine — tig and stick weld with it — this machine is the cats ass

The point of all this — buy the most welder that you can afford no matter if you can use it or not — if you enjoy welding you’ll learn how to use you machine — don’t outgrow your welders capabilities, grow into your welder — if you find welding isn’t for you, you can always sell quality equipment for very little loss

I would strongly suggest the Miller 211 as your 1st welder

I would also suggest a quality auto dimming helmet with a large window — you must see what you are doing — spend $200 plus on your helmet

Fairly certain I'll go with the Lincoln 3550 for a hood. Was strongly considering the Hobart 190, then many users recommended the hh 210mvp for a little more juice and power 110,220 versatility. For that coin I'm knocking at the door of a mm211 lol so I'm leaning uphill a bit, I do agree a better welder would likely resell for fair coin. The only reason to consider Hobart would be to stick with a transformer machine, I read so many mixed reviews, but ide imagine new Miller inverter tech is fairly robust at least for my needs.

I will check out some local suppliers. Most mm210/212 aren't dropping in price on the used market around here.

Let's take it one step further, Anyone using the Miller 215 as it is a multi process machine?
Just curious really. I don't plan on stick/ tig, but wondered if you all prefer individual machines for those purposes?

Every process has its pros and cons, and machines do vary in how they perform.

I have two stick machines. One is a Lincoln tombstone (classic old 240V buzzbox) and the other is a Miller Trailblazer (gas engine driven). The Miller Trailblazer has a much smoother arc than the Lincoln tombstone.

I was also very impressed with how smooth a Miller 211 (and only on 120V) was compared to my Lincoln SP135+ (similarly sized MIG machines).

I am very happy with my Lincoln TIG275. It beats the pants of the old Linde I learned on. But for the price it dang well should too.

Having all three systems available to me, I really would not want to give up any of them. The stick is what I least prefer to use, but if I have to weld outdoors it is the only shielding that really works. The TIG is expensive and had a steeper learning curve, but there is no substitute if you really need control of heat and the rate at which material gets added, plus no spatter with TIG. But I will say the MIG is the quickest and most convenient, as long as it suits what I need to do.

WRT to the welding helmet, I am going to guess you mean the Lincoln 3350 as 3550 doesn't show up on my search. That looks like a reasonable choice. One of my key details is that it have replaceable batteries, and it would appear that one does. Make sure you buy a spare set of batteries before you actually need them. It will probably be a couple of years before you do need them, but know that you eventually will. Being able to replace them sure beats needing to replace the hood. DAMHIKT.

I don't plan on stick/ tig, but wondered if you all prefer individual machines for those purposes?

You don't plan to stick/tig today but if the welding bug does find you...

I personally would have individual machines for the different processes -- Sometimes I'll tack something together with the mig then go full blown stick weld on it to finish it off -- Usually do this on heavy material like 1/2 plus steel where the 211 just isn't enough machine

Keep in mind my Miller 211 is a transformer machine, I was in before they went inverter on that so I have no comments on the inverter version

My 280 is an inverter machine -- kind of nice to be so compact with all that power -- a full 280 amps I believe

Your best bet is a dedicated Mig machine -- I like miller but there are plenty of guys who like Lincoln too

Pulled the trigger on the mvp210 and Lincoln 3350 hood.
Couldn't pass the welder at the 700$ price for the holidays, plus I got the hood brand spanky N.i.b. from a guy for 200$.
Ide say not too bad a setup for a newb, plenty of room to learn.

I'm very happy with the quality of both pieces of equipment, they perform very well.